Daimler buys Uber-rival, mytaxi app

Daimler AG has decided to acquire the mytaxi and RideScout apps as a part of its expansion plan into transport services.

The world’s third-largest maker of luxury cars bought 100% of mytaxi’s Intelligent Apps GmbH for an undisclosed amount after already taking an initial stake in the company in 2012. Daimler also acquired RideScout LLC, which allows users in 69 cities from North America to choose from a range of transport options.

Head of Daimler’s Moovel unit, Robert Henrich, said in a statement that “Our aim is to make mobility as simple as possible. We would like to invite the taxi operators to work in close partnership with Moovel and mytaxi to exploit the potentials and opportunities offered by mobile Internet services.”

The acquisition is part of CEO Dieter Zetsche’s plan to attract new and younger customers who are less interested in having their own car. The German carmaker is also operating the Car2Go, a car sharing service that offers one-way rentals in two-person Smart cars in 26 cities. Mytaxi allows users to book licensed taxis via a smartphone app and it was chosen by Daimler as it is a less controversial alternative to Uber Technologies Inc.’s ride-hailing application that is close to being banned in Germany.